Wisconsin graduation rates, absenteeism improve

Wisconsin high school graduation rates are the highest since the state started its current tracking system in 2010, according to data released Thursday by the Department of Public Instruction. 

For the 2023-24 school year, 91.1 percent of students graduated on time. That’s up from 90.1 percent in 2022-23. 

Still, the four-year graduation rate varies depending on race and location. 

While 95 percent of white students are graduating in four years, the number drops to 85 percent for Hispanic students and 72 percent for Black students. 

“Although we should celebrate our successes, we should all continue to be concerned about — and work to reduce — the disparities in graduation rates between different groups of students,” State Superintendent Jill Underly said in a statement. “The reality is that students of color and other marginalized students are not doing as well, although those cohorts are also seeing some improvement.” 

In Milwaukee Public Schools, 69 percent of students are graduating in four years. In the Madison Metropolitan School District, 84 percent graduated on time. 

Green Bay Area Public Schools and the Appleton Area School District had about 88 percent of students graduating on time.

In Racine and Kenosha, 84 percent and 88 percent, respectively, of high school seniors are graduating in four years.  

The data is part of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s annual certified data release. The release also includes enrollment figures for 2024-25, along with 2023-24 attendance rates.

In 2023, the DPI partnered with Graduation Alliance to re-engage chronically absent and academically at-risk students. 

The program, ENGAGE, was funded with federal COVID-19 relief dollars. Gov. Tony Evers’ 2025-27 budget proposal includes $6 million additional funding to sustain its efforts.

“We need to double-down on making investments for those kids who need it the most,” Underly said. “We should also be concerned that the federal government seems to want to end the collection of disparities data, which would hide these challenges rather than solve them.”

DPI data also showed chronic absenteeism rates fell to 17.7 percent for the 2023-24 school year, while attendance rates climbed to 92.4 percent, marking the lowest and highest levels, respectively, since the 2020-21 school year.

But like graduation rates, chronic absenteeism varied depending on location. 

The attendance rate is 83 percent in Milwaukee; 86 percent in Racine; 89 percent in Madison and Green Bay; 91 percent in Kenosha and 93 percent in Appleton.